A Preaching Program To Instill Social Consciousness in African-American Churches in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas

Problem

In Adventist African-American churches in the Dallas/Fort Worth (D/FW), Texas, Metroplex, there has been a dearth of preaching to issues pertaining to social consciousness. This dearth is due to the utilization of preaching models that are incapable of addressing all the needs of African-Americans who are constantly buffeted by the stresses of life. The primary focus of preaching has traditionally been upon longterm salvation and spiritual formation, as opposed to community concerns—especially as they relate to preaching in the African-American communities of the D/FW Metroplex. As a result, many Blacks in this region are not being reached as effectively as they could be via the preaching event.

Method

A model for preaching to the social consciousness of churches in the D/FW Metroplex was developed which includes a foundation of theological, sociological, demographic, and linguistic studies. Sermons were preached to two church congregations, and a training seminar was presented to a group of pastors who oversee congregations in the D/FW Metroplex. A qualitative study of the responses of the church members was conducted, and the pastors completed a variety of surveys both before and after the implementation of the seminar.

Conclusion

There is a need for a homiletic approach that strongly and actively incorporates elements of the “now,” while not overlooking the necessity of addressing the “not yet.” Such an approach will give greater success to reaching African-Americans who are resistant to traditional homiletic approaches that involve addressing the spiritual side of African-Americans, while overlooking the wholistic nature of those same African- Americans.